UPDATE, Sept. 27, 2022:
A judge dismissed the plaintiff’s federal claims against Hernando Police with prejudice, and the state claims were dismissed without prejudice. The case is now closed.
UPDATE: The FBI has opened an investigation into this case, the Hernando Police Chief said Thursday.
Chief Scott Worsham said someone filed a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s office about this case. The U.S. Attorney contacted the local FBI office, which is now investigating the matter.
Two officers have been put on desk duty, Worsham said. He did not identify the officers.
HERNANDO, Miss. (WREG) — It started as a chase last September. Hernando Police were hot on the heels of Adrian Hoyle, who they had pulled over.
Hoyle hit the gas when the officer went back to his patrol car. A chase ensued and went on for several minutes before Hoyle’s car crashed.
But it’s what happened next that has landed this case in court.
Police dash cam video shows the K-9 Police dog pounce on Hoyle after he exits his wrecked-out car.
Hoyle’s lawyer says Hernando Police Officer Lynn Brown deployed his assigned K-9 to attack Hoyle, when he was completely defenseless and compliant.
He says Brown and other officers began to physically attack and assault Hoyle with their feet and fists, even kicking him while he was handcuffed, with another officer standing on his back, wiping his feet on Hoyle’s body like it was a floor mat.
According to the lawsuit, Hoyle suffered dog bites and flesh wounds and was taken by squad car to the hospital and not by ambulance, which is customary procedure.
Court obtained photos that show some of his injuries. It says Hoyle had to get eight sutures to the chest and torso from the dog bites and tearing wounds.
Officer Lynn Brown is specifically named in the $10 million lawsuit for using excessive force and causing bodily injury without due process.
The Hernando Department is included for failing to enforce policy and procedures and turning a blind eye to the actions of Officer Brown, and constitutional rights violations of other officers.
But the attorney for Hernando Police is asking to have Hoyle’s case thrown out though, calling it misleading and a total sham.
In a motion to dismiss the case, the attorney says Hoyle omits to mention he admitted stealing the car he was in, ran a light and led police on an eight-minute erratic chase, only stopping after he lost control and rammed into two police vehicles.
But Hoyle’s lawsuit isn’t the only one involving the same Hernando officer.
Linda White’s son, Jesse White, and his best friend, Kristopher Ford, were killed along Highway 51 in 2019 when Officer Brown continued to chase them.
Linda White, and Kristopher Ford’s mother, have also sued Hernando Police and Officer Brown.
“I want is justice for my son. That’s all I all I want,” said Linda White.
The two young men were pulled over on Highway 51 for a car tag violation when they started to flee.
The suit says Brown wasn’t the officer who pulled them over, but heard the call and got in on the car chase even when dispatch called officers to back off the pursuit for safety reasons.
The car the men were in flipped, killing both of them. Our camera caught video of what the mangled car looked like afterwards.
Despite the chase being terminated, the suit says Officer Brown attempted a tactical vehicle intervention without regard to the number of passengers in the vehicle. The City of Hernando and Police Chief Scott Worsham determined Brown acted in compliance with policy with respect to the use of force against the men.
“And the back of the car, he bumped the car. You could see it. The evidence is there and when he bumped the car he sent it over the bank. I think he needs to be off the force because he is hurting other folks. He is not helping, he is hurting,” said Linda White.
Legal action involving Brown even goes back to his time at the Horn Lake Police Department. WREG found another lawsuit from 2013 that says Brown used his K-9 dog to attack a suspect.
The suit says Jacob Cooper, who was first fleeing police, had basically surrendered and was no longer a threat when Officer Brown gave the command for the K-9 Sunny to “bite him.”
While Cooper pleaded to “please get the dog,” the suit says Brown allowed the K-9 to attack for several minutes even after Cooper was handcuffed.
It says the K9 ripped into Cooper’s lower calf, tearing away flesh, muscle and tissue, causing multiple surgeries and skin grafts.
WREG tried to get Hernando Police to talk about their policies and excessive force complaints. The Hernando Police Chief sent us a statement saying:
“Due to this incident being an ongoing legal matter, I cannot comment to any specifics of this case. However, we do look forward to the day in which we get to tell our side of the story.”
But those who say they were wronged by Hernando police are seeking their justice in court.
“It’s not police policy to do these things that he is doing,” said White.
That 2013 case involving the K-9 attack was appealed and later settled. The other two cases are still pending.